


Danger Days

by SparksPrototype



Category: Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys (Album), My Chemical Romance
Genre: Blood, Mild Language, Minor Violence, minor OCs - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-06
Updated: 2015-04-07
Packaged: 2018-02-12 00:39:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2089128
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SparksPrototype/pseuds/SparksPrototype
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What really happened to the Fabulous Killjoys.</p><p>Story version of what happened in the music videos and beyond, and the chapters correspond with each song on the album. At least, I tried to use the lyrics for the chapter’s events, along with the pre-existing music videos. (excluding bonus tracks, sorry).</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Up, Up, Up!” Party Poison shouted, moving through the diner, poking his head into the makeshift bedrooms, rousing everyone inside. “Come on guys, if we’re gonna make it out to that outpost before any of the gangs do, we gotta move now!” Fun Ghoul shouted profanities from his room, and Poison simply chuckled to himself as he made his way to The Girl’s room. She was lying on her side, blinking into the sunlight streaming through the window.

“Oh good, you’re awake! Time to get moving!”

She giggled and sat up. “Yeah I know, I heard you yelling at everyone.”  
Poison laughed in reply, leaving to return to his and Kobra Kid’s shared bedroom. Kobra, as usual, was still sound asleep. Poison sighed, made his way over to the bed and, getting a devious grin on his face, knelt next to the head of Kobra’s mattress, licked his pinky finger, and stuck it into Kobra’s ear. He jolted awake, his legs flailing and kicking the bed sheet off, and he clapped a hand over his ear. “What the hell, man?”

Poison laughed again. “I told you to wake up!”

“You didn’t say anything!”

“I shouted it through the diner.”

“Well why don’t you ever do shit like this to the others?”

Poison snorted, pointing at him. “Because you’re my baby brother, and besides, if I tried that shit on the others, they’d take my entire arm off.”

Kobra jumped up, fast enough to almost knock Poison over and send him, laughing again, skittering for the door. “AND WHAT MAKES YOU THINK I WON’T?” Kobra roared, and Poison shut the door behind himself as he left the room.

A little while later, The Girl sat on one of the bar stools that they’d moved outside the diner as the Fabulous Four packed their gear for the day into the trunk of the Trans Am. Ghoul walked over to her, ruffling her hair with a smile. “You’ve got your bandana, right? We’re going to Zone Six today, hope you’re ready for bad smells and radiation.” Jet Star pulled his head out of the trunk of the car, shutting it, and called over to them. “Don’t scare her, Ghoul, we haven’t even left yet!”

“Nice of you to join the land of the living, Mister I’m-Not-Gonna-Talk-Until-I-Gotta-Yell-At-Someone!”

Jet shook his head, and The Girl just laughed, pulled her bandana out of her pocket, and tied it around her neck. “Yep, all set! What’s gonna happen when we get to Zone Six?”  
Ghoul put a hand on his hip, thinking a bit. “Well, first we’ll pass the field of bodies, because Six is where BLI just dumps all the bodies and junk from their experiments.” His comment earns a “Come on, Ghoul, knock it off” from Jet, and Ghoul sighed and continued. “But once we pass that, there’s an outpost that Chow Mein scoped out yesterday, completely abandoned because the Dracs were afraid of the radiation. He said there’s still a ton of stuff in there, so we’re gonna go check it out.”

The Girl nodded with a smile, about to say something, when Poison came out of the diner, unclipping his transmitter from his belt, and Kobra came around the corner of the building, his helmet under his arm. “We’re heading out now, D, we’ll be back around nightfall in two days,”he said into the small device, waiting for the reply as the girl slipped the stool inside the door of the diner, and everyone piled into the car. “Sounds good, Poison, keep your wits about you and your head out of the sand, understand?”

Poison chuckled. “Yes sir!” He said back, and clipped the transmitter to his belt again. He turned around and locked the door of the diner, then headed to the car, getting in and starting the engine with a satisfied smile. He put his sunglasses on his face and pushed them up the bridge of his nose with a finger, and stepped on the gas pedal as the car pulled off of the rocky sand and headed down the sun-cracked road. Kobra sat in the front seat, his elbow propped against the window frame and his head on his hand, as Jet and Ghoul sat in the back, with The Girl between them. “Put on some music, it’s gonna be a long trip,” Ghoul whined from the back seat. Kobra chuckled, and tucked a cassette tape into the player and turned the volume knob. The speakers crackled a little, then the sounds of Mad Gear and the Missile Kid could be heard blaring through the car. Poison had started humming along gently when Ghoul suddenly called out, “Aw man, not these guys again, how about something quality, like Ratchet Matches! We never listen to them anymore!”

The Girl giggled, and Jet pulled out a ‘zine from the pocket in the back of Poison’s seat. “Yeah, there’s a reason for that,” He said, not even looking up from the issue. The rest of the car laughed a little, and Ghoul rolled his eyes, and rested his head on his hand and stared out the window, watching the various parts of desert life as their colors blurred together and they sped past down the road.

Around nightfall, the car pitched passed a sign that read “APPROACHING ZONE SIX. WARNING: RADIATION” in faded black letters. Poison instinctively tucked his bandana around his nose and mouth, and glanced in the mirror. The Girl was asleep with her head against Ghoul’s shoulder, and Ghoul, also asleep, had laid his head on top of hers. He smiled to himself, but that smile faded when they began passing rows upon rows of white plastic bags, all stamped with the BLI logo and name. Kobra shifted in his seat, obviously uncomfortable, and stared down at his hands in his lap to avoid looking at his surroundings.

Some ways after they had passed the field, Jet suddenly called from the back, “There; that should be it.” Poison looked around, spotting a fence and a dusty white building behind it. He pulled off to the side of the road and turned off the car, getting out. He stretched his legs and arms, then walked up to the fence and laced his fingers in the holes, staring at the squatty, dull gray building. It looked to be only one floor, and the metal door was covered in dents and scratches. Kobra came up next to him, his hands jammed in his pockets. “It looks pretty empty from here,” he said, and Poison nodded. “That’s good. Easier pickings for tomorrow.” Kobra nodded in reply, then the two returned to the car, where Jet, Ghoul and The Girl had pulled things out of the trunk, like a few cans of food, a couple dirty sleeping bags which unfortunately had one or two holes in them, and The Girl’s radio, which she sat down in the sand and promptly turned on.

A few moments of static poured from the box as she fiddled with the dials on the front, then the group heard Dr. Death Defying’s deep, comforting voice filling the air around them. “...for this evening. We’ve got some Killjoys traveling around and switchin’ zones tonight, so if that’s you, keep your gun close and your friends closer. This next song goes out to you.” There was a small clicking sound as a peppy, somewhat relaxing song came on, and the group all smiled to themselves as they set up their camp for the night.


	2. Bulletproof Heart

Poison awoke as a ray of sun shone directly in his face. He squeezed his eyes shut tighter, then sighed and sat up, stretching, and rubbed his eyes, opening them to look around. Ghoul was already awake, standing off closer to the fence, smoking. Their improvised fire pit, a circle of rocks, basically, still contained some smoldering ashes and embers of dried grasses and cactus pads from the night before. Ghoul’s sleeping bag was nowhere to be found, and Poison could only assume that he’d already packed it into the car. The Girl slept next to Jet as they shared the only bed sheet they had brought and slept on top of a well-worn piece of foam, and Kobra had chosen to lay his ratty sleeping bag adjacent to his own. Poison rolled his bag up, brought it to the Trans Am and stuffed it in the trunk, careful not to wake the others, then trod over to Ghoul. “Those things are gonna kill you one day,” he said, looping an arm around Ghoul’s shoulders, considering he was at least 2 inches taller.

“Y’know, I keep hoping. Beats going hungry and dirty all the time, right?”

Poison flicked the side of his ear. “Don’t talk like that. You’ve got stuff worth living for.”

Ghoul flinched away from his hand. “Ah, calm down, it was a joke.” He sighed, breathing out a wispy cloud of smoke, and was silent for a moment. “When should we get the others up?”

“Soon,” Poison replied, “let them sleep for a bit longer. The Girl had trouble falling asleep. You should be getting more sleep too; you hardly do back at the diner... and don’t think I haven’t noticed.”

“Yeah, I know.” He was silent again. “Do you ever think that... maybe, things would have been better off if we hadn’t left the city? How much happier we’d be, or what we’d actually have?”

“I used to, but I don’t think we’d be happier. We wouldn’t be... us, y’know?”

Ghoul dropped the end of the cigarette to the ground and snuffed it out with his boot, and shoved his hands into his pockets. “I guess.”

A little while later, they were startled out of their silence. “Hey, you two done over there? We just got a transmission from D saying there’re some people on their way up here, spotted in Zone Three! Whatever we do, we gotta do it now,” Kobra shouted at the two of them, and Poison patted Ghoul on the back and jogged over to the group, a small cloud of dust billowing up with every step he took. When Ghoul reached their little campsite as well, and all of their gear had been put away, Kobra smirked. “Hey, I got us something for this trip. It’s not much, but...” He strode to the passenger side of the car and opened the door, reaching under the seat. He pulled out a battered brown box, brought it back to the group, and handed it to The Girl. She opened it slowly, and her eyes lit up instantly. “What’s in there?” Jet asked, the others just as eager as him.

“Apples!” She exclaimed, pulling one out and showing them all. They all grinned at the same time. “Woah, Kid, how’d you get those? They must have cost a fortune!” Poison said, as The Girl handed them each one of the round, red fruits. They weren’t big, but they were apples, and they were food.

“Well, they weren’t gonna be cheap, but I had Chow Mein look into getting some as long as I picked him up something actually worth using on this run. If we don’t find something, I’ve gotta pay up.”

“That’s... really awesome, Kobra, thanks a ton.” Ghoul said, his mouth full of the fruit and a small line of juice already making its way down his chin.

“Thank you Kobra!” The Girl said with a big smile, and the others thanked him as well as they ate their breakfasts. When they were finished, they pitched the cores into a cluster of cacti, destroyed the fire pit, and made their way through the rusted gate of the fence towards the abandoned outpost.

Around mid-day, they had cleared the main lobby and a few rooms beyond, with Jet switching out his old backpack for a newer one without holes, before they stumbled upon the storage closet at the back of the mess hall, which sat virtually untouched and stocked with Better Living dried and canned goods, boxed goods, medical supplies, blankets, and more. Their eyes went wide and they smiled, cramming into the room with just barely enough space for all of them, and shoving everything they could get their hands on into their bags. “Holy shit,” Ghoul remarked, “I haven’t seen this much USEABLE stuff in one place since I left the city.”

The rest of them laughed lightly, and continued filling their bags with the black and white-labeled goods, but after a while, Poison frowned to himself. They’d gotten almost everything they could find, but... hadn’t it been a little too quiet? Hadn’t D radioed them and told them there was a gang on their way?

What Poison hadn’t known was that the transmitter had been left in the car, next to the box that had held the apples.

What Poison had missed, because of the transmitter, was that the people that had been seen were not a gang, but two vans full of Draculoids, heading to the outpost to retrieve what had been left behind.

“Hey Jet, do you have the transmitter?” Poison asked, still frowning.

Jet checked his pockets, as did the others, self-consciously. “Uh, no? I thought you did.”

“Well I don’t. Where is it?”

“Do you want me to go check the car?”

“Yeah, that’d be great. We’ll bring your stuff out if we finish up in here.”

Jet nodded, set his bag down on the floor, and headed for the door. The floor was surprisingly clean, save for the trail of dust and dirt the killjoys had tracked in, and he smiled to himself at that. He got out to the car, checking through the trunk first. Not finding it there, he moved to the front of the car, immediately opening the door once he found the transmitter. He picked it up, and it fizzled a little, but there was a faint noise coming from somewhere, sounding like the rumbling of motors. He furrowed his brow at the transmitter, and turned up the volume, but nothing happened. Then he looked up, just in time to see the two large, white vans speeding down the road towards the outpost. His eyes widened, and he dropped the transmitter into the car and slammed the door, sprinting to the building.

“Guys, take the stuff, NOW! They’re here!” He shouted once inside, making his way to where they’d been. Poison’s head snapped up instantly when he heard the shout. “We’ve gotta go. Now. Grab what you have. Ghoul, get Jet’s bag.”

The group sprang into action, throwing the bags onto their backs and spilling out of the room with Ghoul in front, followed by Kobra, and Poison, holding The Girl’s hand, in the back. They met Jet about halfway to the door, and they all headed full-speed towards the exit.

As they burst through the door, they all squinted at the sudden change from darkened interior rooms to blinding sunlight. They stopped short and froze, however, as a line of Dracs stood between them and the fence, their car, and their freedom. As Poison’s eyes adjusted, he couldn’t quite count all of them, but he knew they were outnumbered.

“Drop your weapons and what you stole,” called one of the Dracs in an authoritative tone, “theft is a Class C felony, and you will be arrested if you do not comply.”

Poison said nothing, but threw a sideways glance to the others. All still had bandanas over their faces, save for The Girl, but each bore the same worried expression in their eyes. She squeezed Poison’s hand tighter, her eyes darting back and forth across the fence- then she focused on one particular section. To the right of the gate and the collection of Dracs, there was a hole in the fence, just big enough for her to slip through.

“Silence will only ensure your capture,” a different Drac shouted, her voice sounding harsher than the first. The Girl was breathing hard, and when the Dracs at the end of the line stepped forward, guns drawn, she took her chance.

She let go of Poison’s hand and bolted for the hole in the fence. “NO!” Poison shrieked, lunging for her and reaching out, but she evaded his grasp, continuing for the fence. She was only able to make it half way, however, before the last Drac grabbed her by the arm, and she swung around with a scream, writhing in his grip. Poison drew his gun, and with a yell, began firing, rushing towards the Drac that held her, and the other three Killjoys followed suit; the entire plain erupting into chaos. Blinded by rage, Poison wasn’t able to see where all of the laser blasts around him landed, and when he suddenly felt a searing pain strike the back of his calf, he tripped and hit the ground with a hard thud. His gun skidded from his hand, and he crawled towards it, picking it up and standing just in time to see a man standing directly in front of him, aiming a stark white gun at his forehead. No mask and a wicked grin on his face, his long, grey coat ruffled in the breeze from the scuffle around them. Poison’s eyes widened in fear. Korse.

How had he not seen Korse before? Poison thought frantically, had he hidden behind the line of Dracs? Was this... real?

Poison raised his gun as well, darkening his expression, but before he was able to do anything else, a sharp blow to the back of his head sent a dull ache throughout his entire body.

Korse’s grin widened as he uttered the words, “Keep running,” a slight pause in between.  
Black spots danced in Poison’s vision, and he fell to the ground again, his sight fading altogether as he blacked out.

\--------

When Poison came to, daylight was running out. He sat up a little too quickly, and doubled over, leaning forward on his hands, his chest heaving. His head was pounding, and he felt nauseous. After a few deep breaths, he steadied himself up on his feet, looking around for the others, remembering what happened. He didn’t know how he had been knocked out, but he winced as he limped towards Kobra, who lay on the ground a few feet away. He dropped to his knees and pulled his bandana down to his neck.

“Come on, Kid, wake up...” He pleaded as he shook Kobra’s shoulders gently, pulling his brother’s bandana to his neck as well.A thick bruise darkened his jawline. Kobra’s eyes fluttered open, the back of his hand coming up to his forehead. “Where are we?” He asked, obviously still dazed.

Poison stood and held out a hand for him to take. “We’re still in Six. But we’re leaving as soon as we can. You okay?”

Kobra pulled himself up with Poison’s help, dusting himself off a little. “Yeah... Yeah, I’ll be fine, but... What happened? Is- Oh...” He suddenly remembered, “Oh no.”

“Yeah. Go get Jet up, I’ll get Ghoul.”

Kobra nodded, and then jogged over to where Jet lay in the sand as Poison searched for the fourth man, finding him farther away from the rest of the group. When he approached, he noticed a small streak of blood trickling from his nose, and his black hair clung to his forehead from sweat. Poison dropped to his knees and pulled the bandana off his nose and mouth as he had done with his brother, and shook him gently. “Ghoul, get up, we’ve gotta go.”

When Ghoul didn’t respond right away, Poison shook him a little harder and raised his voice, growing a little worried. “Ghoul, let’s go, we’ve got to save her, come on.”

“I tried...” he mumbled hoarsely, his eyes still closed.

“I know. We all did... and we all failed. It won’t happen again.”

Ghoul opened his eyes, blinking a bit, and sat up slowly. He brought a hand to his nose, trying to wipe away the blood but only succeeding in smearing it across his face. “My head hurts like hell...”

“Yeah, mine too. Must have hit us pretty hard.” Poison then stood, holding out his hand again.

Ghoul took it and stood, but wobbled a bit. Poison caught him by the arm, helping him steady himself. He breathed out a heavy sigh, then brushed Poison’s hand off gently and continued forwards on his own.

They all reached the car and got inside, not saying a word to each other until they were a ways down the road, past the body field and re-entering Zone Five. It was Ghoul who spoke up first.

“Why did they decide to leave us alive? They got their goods, why do they care?”

“What they took was more important than us,” Poison answered hotly, replaying the events in his head.

“They want to taunt us,” Jet said, with his thoughts finished by Kobra, who answered: “...because they have someone of ours.”

Poison’s foot mimicked a block of lead as they sped through the zones in record time. Kobra touched his arm gently, watching his face. “You think you should slow down a little?”

“How can you say that? Don’t you want her back?”

“Of course, we all do, but we’re no help to her if we’re stranded with no fuel... or dead.”  
Poison sighed and eased up on the pedal slightly, shifting in his seat and gripping the steering wheel.

They drove all through the remaining hours of sunlight, and then through most of the night as well. None of them had slept at all on the way, and it was still dark by the time they reached the diner. Poison had had time to formulate a plan on the way, so by the time they reached home, he was fuming, and hadn’t planned on stopping at the diner.

“Poison, you need to stop. We’ve gotta get our bearings before we can charge in there. Hell, we CAN’T just charge in there,” Kobra said, trying to keep his cool.

Poison gripped the wheel so hard his knuckles turned white. “Like hell we can’t. We can, and we will. We’re going now.”

“Poison, stop the car. Now. Or so help me god I will stop the car myself,” Jet said, a tone of anger in his voice.

Poison gritted his teeth and pulled off the road in front of the diner, the jerky stop spewing rocks in several directions. As soon as he had turned off the car, he left the keys in the ignition and jumped out, slamming the door behind him and storming off behind the diner. The other three got out after him, and Kobra sighed, glancing at Jet. He nodded, and Kobra went to find his brother. Ghoul sighed next, rubbing his face and leaning back against the car. “We’ve got to go after her.”

“I know, but how? Like Kobra said, we can’t just charge in there.”

“Why the hell not?”

“Because-“  
Ghoul cut across his words, raising his voice a little. “You said so yourself, they’re taunting us. They’re waiting for us. They want us dead, that’s the only reason they took her! Fuck, if we’re gonna get killed anyway, the least we can do is save that little girl. She doesn’t deserve to live in that hellhole.” His voice tapered off at the end of his sentence, and his eyes were blank as if he’d already accepted his fate. “We are not leaving her in there any longer than she has to be.”

Jet sighed, beginning to come to terms with the severity of the matter as well. “You’re right.”

“I’m right? That’s all you have to-“

“For God’s sake, Ghoul! Just... go do something about your nose. I’ll radio Dr. D and tell him what we’re about to do.” Jet almost never raised his voice to anyone, and this caught Ghoul off guard. He looked away, then headed inside the diner.

Behind the building, Poison stomped through the dirt, not knowing what to do. He ran his hands through his hair, pacing back and forth, until he gave a yell of agony, kicking a rock as hard and as far as he could, then sank to his knees.Hot tears pricked his eyes and streamed down his face. He leaned forward on his hands, his body wracked with sobs. Kobra came around the corner and found him on the ground, going over to him. He looped his hands around Poison’s arm and gently pulled him up, and almost as soon as he did, Poison wrapped his arms around his brother tightly, fisting his hands in his jacket. Kobra returned the hug, placing one hand on the back of his head.

“It’s my fault,” Poison choked out, “we’d still have her if I hadn’t let go of her hand.”

“Don’t blame yourself for this, Poison; it’s not your fault.”

“I just... I could have...”

“Don’t think about that. It doesn’t matter. We’re going to get her back, no matter what it takes.”

The two were silent for a few moments, and Poison pulled away, wiping his eyes on the insides of his forearms and sniffing. He staggered a little, wincing, the pain from the burn on his leg hitting him again. Kobra furrowed his brow at him, and he sighed and pulled up the cuff of his jeans, revealing an angry red mark across the back of his leg. An understanding passed between them, and Kobra took his arm as Poison limped towards the back door of the diner.

Once they were inside, Kobra helped Poison sit down in one of the booths, then went to go get the first aid kit from the supply closet. On his way back, he noticed Ghoul in the bathroom, his hands on the edges of the sink as he stared down into it. Kobra walked over to him, rubbing his back gently. Ghoul jumped back a little, startled, then looked back down. “Sorry, I... didn’t hear you come in.”

“It’s alright. Come on out into the diner with Poison and I. He’s calmed down. We’re gonna talk about our next move.”

Ghoul nodded, and followed Kobra out of the bathroom. Jet had come inside, and was standing next to the booth where Poison was sitting. Kobra sat next to Poison, Poison propped his foot up on the table so Kobra could get a better look at it, and Ghoul sat across from the brothers. After a few moments of silence, and after Kobra had started cleaning Poison’s wound with a rag and water from a bottle, Jet spoke.

“I radioed Dr. D, and told him what had happened. He doesn’t want us going into the city... but that’s not going to stop us.”

“Kobra, hurry up-“ Poison started, but a hiss of pain and his brother’s words cut him off. “Don’t do that. I’m moving as fast as I can.”

“We probably won’t make it back from this,” Ghoul said, staring down at the table like he had been doing to the sink in the bathroom. The rest of them looked at him, but all realized he was right.

“At least we can save her. We’ll get her out of the city, even if we don’t make it out ourselves.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know all this kinda happened in the "Na Na Na" video, but I felt like it'd be easier to write it in here.  
> Ooh, things are getting tight! Guess which one's up next?


	3. SING

The Trans Am tore down the road as Party Poison kept the pedal pressed hard to the floor. Even with his bandaged leg, he had refused to let any of the others drive, and claimed that the pain did not bother him. All were too concerned with their objective to argue. Fun Ghoul glared menacingly out the window and tightened his gloves as Jet Star sat in the back seat beside him, readying his gun.

Kobra Kid stared straight ahead through the slowly-growing daylight, glancing down every so often at the picture of The Girl he had taped to the dashboard of the car. They had to save her. They couldn’t let her stay in that city, start taking all those pills...  
He shook his head and gave a sideways look to his brother, who seemed to be staring straight ahead as well. Kobra could only imagine the thoughts going through his head.  
Poison tightened his grip on the wheel and flicked on the headlights as they passed the steel fence surrounding the city, and entered the tunnel leading to the city’s main roadway. The pale cinderblock walls of the tunnel were lined with projected billboards, bearing messages such as “Keep Smiling.”

Up ahead of them near the mouth of the tunnel sat a white guard station with a gate, kept by a Draculoid and a Scarecrow. As soon as they heard the rumble of the engine, they looked up, and instantly recognized the Trans Am. They jumped up, drawing their guns and aiming for the rusty car, a few blasts bouncing off and denting its front further. Poison kept his foot on the accelerator and continued on.

The car bolted forward and crashed through the gate, sending the Drac and the Scarecrow scattering out of the way. Poison glanced in the rearview mirror and saw the Scarecrow reach up from his position on the ground amidst the broken wood pieces and slam his hand down on a circular button, causing loud, blaring alarm to sound all around them. He let out a shaky breath, knowing that all they could do now was hope they made it to The Girl in time before the rest of BL/ind’s peacekeepers caught up to them.

Inside the BL/ind Headquarters building, as soon as the alarm had been triggered, Scarecrow and Draculoid alike rushed to the armory and began arming themselves with weapons and riot gear. The Girl sat on the floor of the Scarecrow Unit control room, monitored by the Director. She smiled up at the tall woman as if she knew what that alarm meant, and the Director merely gave her an irritated sneer as she turned to focus her attention on the screens and camera feeds.

The Trans Am screeched to a halt in front of the large Headquarters building. The outside was adorned with the Better Living logo in black, the neon lights behind it glowing a soft blue against the lightening sky. Poison left the keys in the ignition and leapt out of the car, slamming the door behind him, and Kobra, Jet, and Ghoul did the same. Poison led the group towards the main entrance, and they all drew their guns, determination and anger written across their faces. They approached the security checkpoint outside the door, as two Scarecrows popped up from where they had been waiting behind the control panels. Both were shot and killed easily and without hesitation, along with the two guards inside the entrance, and the Fabulous Killjoys marched inside the building, going single file through the doorway.

As they made their way closer to the main entrance of the Scarecrow Unit control room, sirens shrieking and warning lights flashing along the walls, the Director decided it was time for immediate action. She left the room and The Girl through the second exit and stalked down the hallway.

The group, finally reaching the control room, kicked open the glass-paned door. Kobra and Jet waited outside to stand watch, and Poison and Ghoul went inside. Ghoul cleared the room, killing the Scarecrows at the terminals before they had a chance to react, their white-clad bodies slumping over in their seats. Poison ran into the room and knelt to the floor, and The Girl ran over to him instantly, holding him as tight as she could. Poison squeezed his eyes shut in relief, yet could not shake the feelings of regret and grief weighing heavily on this shoulders.  
As the Director made her way to the upper levels of the building, she pulled a small, silver remote from her pocket and flipped one of its switches. The switch activated a new alarm, and sent a transmission to the regeneration labs. The door to the restoration cell containing Korse was opened.

The Four and The Girl made their way out of the building, The Girl in front this time, showing them the way out. She lead them through a bland hallway with harsh fluorescent lights. The walls were lined with wanted posters of their faces, which on any other day would have made Poison smirk to himself. They could hear doors opening and heavy footsteps following them. Once they reached the open span of the main lobby, Poison whipped around and began firing his gun into the crowd of Dracs behind them, and the others fired as more Dracs entered the lobby. The Girl, frightened, stopped frozen in her tracks, covering her ears with her hands as the chaos carried on around her. Ghoul and Jet took off from the group, and Kobra was not able to see where they went, but all he knew was that he was alone with his brother in the middle of the room, back to back, trying to clear a path for the five of them to get to the door. They were so close.

Poison broke away from the main area to come up behind one of the Dracs, ripping the mask off his head and shooting him in the back. As the Drac spun around and dropped to the floor, Poison looked down at the mask in his fist and hesitated. He was breathing hard, his hands were shaking, and his legs felt numb. These “peacekeepers” were human, not just mindless machines, defending their cause, just like the rest of the Killjoys.

Poison shook his head a little, dropping the mask, and started firing again, aiming at nowhere in particular. He wasn’t sure if he was hitting anything; he was still in a small state of disbelief.  
His hesitation had allowed Korse to locate him. Poison had known that Korse was fighting with the rest of the Dracs, he just hadn’t known Korse was this close.

Korse strode up to Poison and grabbed him by his jacket collar, pinning him against the wall before Poison was given a chance to aim. Korse positioned the tip of his gun against Poison’s throat with a snarl. Poison didn’t struggle against Korse’s grip, but winced as the back of his head hit the wall, blinking as he remained silent. Korse simply tipped his head and narrowed his eyes, the corners of his mouth tugging at a mocking smile.

Kobra had noticed that Poison was no longer behind him, but only now had he found him, trapped against the wall, unable to use his gun. Kobra abandoned trying to take out the new wave of Scarecrows filtering in from the hallway and rushed to his aid. His effort was cut short as a blast of sound and light came from Korse’s gun. The tall man stepped back and released his grasp on the blue jacket, and Poison’s limp body slid to the floor.

In the middle of the room, The Girl gave a high-pitched scream, squeezing her eyes shut. Kobra barely had time to process his own body’s reactions. Nothing else around him mattered. He let out a yell and charged for his brother as Korse strode away, laughing to himself. Kobra had not been watching the group of Scarecrows, and just as he laid a hand on Poison’s arm, a sharp, burning pain surged through his shoulder and knocked him backwards. He dropped his gun as he fell to the ground, his head roughly colliding with the cold stone floor. He turned on his side, but his vision failed as he lay there, fading out of consciousness, his shoulder still in immense pain.

Jet widened his eyes as he helplessly watched Kobra collapse, and decided they did not have any more time. He ran over to The Girl and grabbed her hand, pulling her from her state and towards the door. She followed, the beginnings of tears in her eyes, and Ghoul was close behind the pair as they headed for the door. Jet wrenched it open with force, checking behind him for The Girl and Ghoul, but once The Girl was safely past the door, Ghoul yanked the door shut. The Girl ran back and tugged on the handle, trying to protest, but Ghoul nodded and gave her a sad smile. Jet pulled her away from the door, and the two of them headed for the Trans Am.

Ghoul turned back around to the Scarecrows and the Dracs, heading straight for all of them as he fired into the mass of peacekeepers. A shot grazed against his left hand, causing him to drop the hand to his side as his face contorted in pain. Using only his right hand to fire, Ghoul’s shots were not as steady as they had been. Several more rounds cut holes through the glass behind him. A second blast hit Ghoul, this time square in the shoulder, with enough force to knock him backwards as well, and he tumbled to the floor.

Jet and The Girl had made their way back to the Trans and stood in front of it, both of them dodging shots from the windows of the building, and Jet fired back. Suddenly, a hot fire blossomed in his chest as he was hit by an unlucky blast, and he was thrown backwards, sprawled across the hood of the car. The Girl stood on the sidewalk immobilized with terror again, her eyes wide.

A dull white van with faded black and yellow tape along the sides pulled up beside her, and as the door was thrown open, Show Pony jumped out, wearing his blue and white spotted helmet. He instantly began firing his gun at the Dracs that had left the building and were making their way towards the van. Dr. Death Defying coaxed the girl towards them, and she ran without hesitation. Dr. D helped her inside, and as soon as she was in, Pony got back into the van as well, slamming the door. The blonde woman with sunglasses in the driver’s seat stamped on the accelerator. A Drac had gotten to the van and had been chasing them, but quickly stopped as the van sped away down the road, back in the direction of the Zones.

“We can’t just leave Jet there!” The Girl cried, shaking, “He won’t make it!”

Dr. Death sighed and took her hands, trying to calm her down. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. There’s nothing we can do. If we go back, we’ll be ghosted too.”

The Girl opened her mouth to say something else, but closed it when she realized he was right. Tears streamed down her face, and Dr. Death called her into his lap. She accepted and burrowed her face into his shoulder as she sobbed, and he wrapped his arms around her gently. Pony rested his back against the door with his legs crossed, taking off his helmet, then leaned forward and held his head in his hands.

\------------------------

The Director watched from a window on an upper level of the building as the van drove away, then turned and barked orders at a set of Scarecrows that stood outside the room.  
Because they were unconscious, Fun Ghoul and the Kobra Kid, as they called themselves, were to be taken to the medical ward below the building and given the “assistance regimen,” ensuring their death, and their bodies were to be disposed of as per the Better Living standard protocol. Jet Star would die due to a fatal shot to his chest, and would be disposed of with the others.

Party Poison, their leader, however, would be revived. The Director had realized, moments too late, that if Poison was “rehabilitated,” displayed for all to see, and lived the rest of his life under Battery City’s watch, the riots and terrorist groups that attack the city might die down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here ends the dreaded chapter. 
> 
> Chapters should be up on Saturdays from now on, since my schedule's straightened out. Thanks for sticking with me!


	4. Planetary (GO!)

A scream tore from his lungs and his eyes snapped open. Panic. Something covered his face. No room around his flailing arms and legs. Breathing short; no air. 

Fun Ghoul struggled to reach for his head, pulling the Better Living Industries cloth mask off and gasping for breath. It was unbearably hot. He moved his limbs again; plastic crinkling around him. Where was he?

The incredibly foul stench around him gave him an idea. Ghoul clawed at the back of the zipper in front of his eyes with both hands. Once there was an opening wide enough for a few of his fingers, the body bag was forced open, and Ghoul kicked his way out, the bag twisting itself around his ankles. The bright sunlight hit his eyes and he squinted, immediately feeling sick. His head was pounding, and as he knelt on the ground on his hands and knees, he vomited into the sand. 

Memories of the last thing he remembered came flooding back to him all at once. He’d seen Poison and Kobra fall, and he’d sacrificed himself for Jet and The Girl... had they made it? His eyes stung with tears as they gently rolled down his face, leaving streaks in the dirt there. His mind swam with questions as he fell back into a sitting position with his head in his hands. How long had he been here? Were any of the others alive? How was he still alive?

Then it dawned on him. It felt the same as what he’d dealt with this back when he lived in the city- the assistance regimen. 

It hadn’t been eight hours yet since they’d left the city... but it had to be close. He’d survive, but how long would it take him to find the others if they were here?

Ghoul wiped his mouth on the back of his sleeve, wincing and letting out a cry of pain because of the burns on his hand and shoulder. Thankfully, Better Living Industries had not replaced his clothes; maybe they hadn’t seen a reason to do so. It didn’t matter to him. He stood shakily, balancing himself, placing his unhurt hand on his forehead momentarily, then checking his pockets and the body bag for any belongings he had had with him. His gun was missing, as were his mask and handkerchief. He sighed, then looked around, the sight confirming exactly where he was. 

Zone Six; Body Fields. 

Ghoul gagged. He tried to cover his mouth and nose, but ended up on his hands and knees, vomiting again. Breathing heavily through his mouth, he grabbed the cloth mask, printed with the black face that smiled up at him, off the ground, and tied it as best as he could around his face. It smelled of stale sweat, and was streaked with dirt.

He stood for a second time. He could see the roadway from where he stood; he guessed about a half-mile to his left, across the sea of white plastic bags that dotted the landscape. Ghoul could tell which of them had been deposited recently with his, as they weren’t yet covered in dirt like the rest. Some hint in the back of his mind told him to search the newer ones. His friends might be inside, in the same state as him. They might be alive. 

Ghoul dropped to his knees beside the bag directly next to his, fumbling with the zipper. As he pulled the cloth mask off of the person’s head, he was met with a face he didn’t recognize. He threw the mask down, moving onto the next. He met with the same result again, and again, and his hope faltered. There had been what seemed to be about twenty bags that were newer. After the fourth, Ghoul had slowed down his search. Opening the fifth bag showed Ghoul a man with a black leather jacket and a red patch on the chest. 

He ripped the bag open all the way and pulled the mask off. Jet Star’s body lay stiff, eyes closed, his hair in a state of disarray. Ghoul widened his eyes a little, shaking Jet’s shoulders, but then he noticed the burn mark and dried blood on his shirt. When he pulled it aside, he saw the scorched wound on Jet’s chest. Ghoul sighed again, and sat back on his heels. He took Jet’s wrist in his hand, and the lack of pulse proved that his friend was dead. 

Ghoul clenched his teeth and closed his eyes, setting Jet’s wrist down again. His eyes welled up again, and he leaned forward so his head touched the sand, balled his fists, and let out a yell of anger. Jet was dead. 

When he sat back up, he decided to leave Jet as he had found him. After carefully removing the black jacket, Ghoul placed the white mask against his chest instead of on his head, folding Jet’s hands on top of it. He leaned forward and kissed his friend’s forehead, then re-sealed the bag. He carried the jacket with him as he moved through the rest of the field.

Ghoul had lost any hope of finding any of his other friends alive, yet he continued to search the newer bags. He knew the time on the pills was ending, too. He didn’t have long, but he didn’t know how long. Crying had been replaced with an unchanging, blank stare that covered his face as he winced and rolled up his sleeves, opening the plastic bags one by one, and yielding no happy results.

One of the last bags contained a taller man with a red leather jacket. Ghoul sighed a third time and braced himself as he pulled off the mask, knowing whom it was before he did so. A shock of dyed blond hair clung to the inside of the mask from static as it was pulled, and Kobra Kid’s pale face lay before him. 

There were no wounds that looked too serious, apart from the one on his shoulder, almost matching Ghoul’s own. Ghoul held two fingers to Kobra’s neck... and was surprised to find a very faint pulse. His eyes widened as adrenaline suddenly surged through his veins, and he moved to sit closer to Kobra’s head. Ghoul shook the man’s shoulders and called his name with increasing intensity, hoping that anything he did would work. The last time this had happened, it’d been him in this position, and he’d been in the city, where there had been medical professionals to help. What had they done to revive him?

He knew Kobra’s heart was still beating, but he tried chest compressions anyway, hoping the movement would wake him up. Ghoul was desperate.  
When those weren't working, Ghoul stared down at his friend for a moment before slapping him as hard as he could across the face and screamed Kobra’s name as loud as he could, then pounded the side of his fist against his chest. He leaned his head down to rest beside his fist, and the sobbing came to him. He was exhausted, and he’d done everything he could think of to save him.

Ghoul was startled backwards when Kobra began dry coughing, sharply inhaling and consequently choking on the lung-fulls of air, his eyes still closed. Ghoul sat up as quick as he could, helping Kobra roll onto his side.

“Hey, Kobra, I’m here, It’s Ghoul... You’re alive, but you've got to slow your breathing down. You’re going to be okay, yeah?” 

Kobra didn't respond, but Ghoul kept repeating himself so Kobra knew he was there. It wasn't too long before Kobra opened his eyes faintly, but then shut them again with a grimace and a groan of immense pain. He rolled all the way over onto his stomach, body shaking as he struggled to push himself up onto his hands and knees.

“Hey, listen to me, you’re alive, but you’re hurt. Now, BLI gave us some pills before they dumped us here. You've gotta get rid of them man, please.” Ghoul rubbed his hand along Kobra’s back, and before he could say anything else, Kobra retched a few times before vomiting as well, coughing a little bit more afterwards. 

Ghoul sighed and continued rubbing Kobra’s back. “There. You’re gonna be okay now.”

“Where are we?” Kobra’s hoarse voice was barely audible as he backed up and fell to the ground, sitting across from Ghoul. He opened his eyes, but held up a hand to shield them from the harsh sunlight. 

“The Zone Six Body Field,” Ghoul answered, “in case your nose couldn’t tell.” Kobra covered his nose and mouth with the back of his hand, and Ghoul knelt next to him to tie the cloth mask that had been over Kobra’s head around his face as well. “That should help a little. We should get moving, but I want to check something first. Stay here.” Ghoul stood and walked away, going to check the last few body bags. He didn’t recognize any of the people inside, but... where was Poison?

Ghoul returned to Kobra, who was sitting exactly as he was left; his eyes closed, and one arm out to the side to stabilize himself. “Alright. Let’s go. Do you think you can stand?” Ghoul said as he picked Jet’s jacket up off the ground, and tied it around his own waist. Kobra nodded weakly and tried to push himself into a standing position, but he swayed to the side, and Ghoul caught him before he could fall back to the ground. Despite his own injuries, Ghoul draped Kobra’s uninjured arm around his shoulders, and they started towards the road, weaving their way through the rows of putrid-smelling, no-longer-white forms as the sun bore down on them.

A little ways down the road, both men where breathing heavily, squinting down at the cracked pavement below their feet as they trudged forward. The only other noises where the sounds of their feet, the desert bugs and the wind whipping through their hair, but it was Kobra who spoke; the first words since they had left the Field. “You don’t happen to have any water, do you?” Kobra’s voice was only slightly less hoarse than it had been before.

“Wish I did. I could really go for some, too.”

“Everything I have hurts. My head feels like it’s gonna burst, my insides are on fire...”

Ghoul nodded. “Pills will do that. We got the ‘assistance regimine.’ Basically the city’s way of putting people down. Takes about eight hours.”

It was silent for a moment before Kobra continued; his voice a little softer now. “Are we... the only ones?”

Ghoul took a moment before answering, then held up the sleeve of Jet’s jacket. “Yeah. We are.”

Kobra started to say something else, but his words faltered and his eyelids fluttered. He stumbled as his legs gave way, and Ghoul stopped them both, cringing as he held up his friend, placing his other hand on Kobra’s chest to support him.

“Woah, hey, Kobra, you still with me?”

Kobra nodded feebly, regaining his balance slowly. 

“Alright. No more talking. We’ll keep walking until we can’t anymore. Then we’ll stop, and I’ll explain everything. I promise. Let’s just keep moving.” He coughed again, the motion jarring his shoulder.   
\------------------------  
A discolored metal sign up ahead and to the left of the road would tell them that they had made it through Zone Five. Their bodies and minds were telling them that if they walked any farther, they would collapse. The fading sunlight told them that they were going to be out in the desert at night, and it was going to get very, very cold. Their necks and arms were sunburnt, their lips were cracked and dry, and both were barely staying upright as they staggered along the side of the road. 

“I can’t...” Kobra choked out. “I can’t keep going. We have to stop.”

“No, we’ve got to at least make it to the outpost shack. It’s not too much longer. Just inside Zone Four.”

Kobra was too tired to object, and neither of them had had a chance to say anything else when they heard the sputtering of a car engine that sounded years past its prime. A rusted, dark green pickup truck with the front bumper and tailgate missing slowed to a stop just ahead of them, and a shorter man stepped out, leaving the door open and the truck running behind him.

“Are you two alright? Need any help?” A deep voice drawled. 

Kobra kept his head down, staring at the road, having enough trouble steadying himself as it was. “Please... and water...” Ghoul said in a raspy tone. The man hurried over to them with a worried expression, and took Kobra’s other arm around his shoulders. “Come on, I’ve got a place not too far from here in the middle of Four. We can get you patched up there.” The man helped Ghoul and Kobra into the bed of the truck, and Ghoul thanked him as Kobra’s head slumped over onto his shoulder. The man got back into the driver’s seat and restarted the truck, and Ghoul kept a hand on Kobra to keep them both from too much movement.  
\------------------------  
The truck grumbled to a stop with the high-pitched screech of sand-crusted brakes in front of a shabby little two-room house. The man hopped out and stood at the back of the truck, offering a hand to Ghoul. Ghoul gently nudged Kobra awake, but Kobra was only able to squeeze his eyes shut tighter and make a small, disgruntled noise. Ghoul helped him to his feet, and they both staggered over to the man. The man stretched both of his arms out and, again, with a little help from Ghoul, picked Kobra up bridal-style and carried him towards the house. Ghoul sat on the edge of the truck and slid to the ground, then followed the man inside, pulling the bandana down past his chin. 

The man laid Kobra down on the battered, floral print sofa as Ghoul closed the door behind them and made his way to an obviously worn arm chair adjacent, a dent in the stuffing from where someone’s head belonged, and innumerable patches of different kinds of fabric. A chest with a rusted lock was pushed against another wall. The man made his way to it, and pulled an equally-rusted key out of his shirt that hung from a chain around his neck. He knelt down, opened the lock and chest, and beginning to dig around inside. “Name’s Jack. Just a neutral. I don’t have the heart to be doing what you guys do. Bein’ a Killjoy’s hard work, I hear.” Ghoul looked over at him as he pulled out a dusty, white tin box with a black cross printed on it, as well as a bandana-wrapped box. Jack brushed both off a little, then stood and made his way to Ghoul. He knelt again, starting to remove the vest from his shoulders, but Ghoul stopped him, taking his wrist. “Help him first,” he said, nodding to the sleeping man on the sofa. “He probably needs it more than I do. He’s younger.” Jack put his hands up and nodded, then unwrapped the second box. “Here,” he replied, “at least take this.” Jack handed over a small plastic bag with about 6 white crackers inside, and a clear packet of full of enough water for about 6 swallows. “It’s not much, but my wife helped me ration out these little packets for us a little bit before she died.” Ghoul’s eyes flitted downwards. He nodded meekly, then took both from him, opening them as best he could with his injured hand. 

Jack made his way to Kobra and began the same process, Ghoul keeping eyes on him the entire time. Jack gingerly took off Kobra’s jacket and neatly folded it and laid it on the floor beside the sofa. After a while, Ghoul spoke, a few cracker crumbs falling from his chin.

“His name is Kobra Kid.”

Jack looked over for a minute with half a smile, then went back to what he had been doing. “I thought you two looked familiar. You’re Fun Ghoul then, yeah?”

“Yeah, that’s me. Sorry you had to see us like this”

Kobra awoke with a yelp of pain at a small cloth, wetted with one of the water packets, being pressed against his shoulder. 

“I’m sorry, my boy, a little pain can’t be helped. You’re hurt pretty bad.”

Kobra scooted upwards so his head rested against the arm of the sofa with a wince, blinked a few times, then settled back down, and Jack continued. “My name’s Jack. You’re at my home-sweet-home, or what I can keep standing without Marie, in the middle’a Zone Four. Anyway, I found you and your friend tromping through Zone Five. You both have some nasty burns. Have a bout with some Draculoids?”

Kobra nodded. “Yeah, in the City.” His still-hoarse voice prompted Jack to apologize, then open and hand Kobra one of the water packets. “The City? What in the name of rusted-out robots you two doin’ back in there? It’s dangerous, all them mind-control sets and helper bots they got.” Jack set the cloth down, and pulled out a small glass jar containing a yellowish cream. He held it up for Kobra to see with a smirk. “Greatest burn salve you’ll ever find. Made with cactus flowers- Marie’s home recipe.” He took out another clean cloth, then scooped a little bit of the salve onto it and began tying it carefully to Kobra’s shoulder. Kobra looked away and closed his eyes, trying not to squirm.

Ghoul sighed. “One of our friends was kidnapped. We all started out, made it all the way to BLI headquarters actually, then they got to us. We tried to get out of there, but they caught us. Gave us the pills and dumped us in the body field. We’re the only ones that made it out.” 

Jack looked over at Ghoul again. “You mean…” Kobra llifted his head and looked at him with scared eyes- he’d forgotten about the other two completely. 

“Yeah. Poison and Jet didn’t make it.” 

Jack looked down at the floor for a little bit, then nodded. Kobra’s head hit the sofa’s arm again; and he squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth. Jack finished tying the cloth around Kobra’s shoulder, then offered him a pack of the crackers. Kobra turned it down with a shake of his head, but Jack placed it on the cushion next to him anyway. He stood, and carried the boxes and their contents over to Ghoul. Kobra sat up on the sofa, his eyes still closed. Ghoul carefully removed his vest, and because his shirt was not a tank top like Kobra’s, his shirt too. 

They were all silent until Jack had finished Ghoul’s shoulder and had begun working on his hand. “I was in Zone Five looking for anything that I could find in the outposts. The Dracs hardly come back ‘cause they don’t like bein’ near the radiation too long. Us non-city folk can handle it for a good while though, huh?” He chuckled half-heartedly, but Ghoul only nodded. Jack sighed, and tied the last knot on the bandage. 

“Listen. I’m goin’ down to Zone One tomorrow morning for some supplies. I’ll keep it quiet that I found you two if you want.”

Ghoul looked up. “Yes, please, definitely.”

Jack nodded. “Of course. Do y’all… want a ride down there too?”

Ghoul looked up again, a tiny bit of hope in his eyes. “Again, yes please, definitely. You have no idea how awesome that’d be. Do you know where Dr. Death Defying runs his radio   
shows from?”

“Yeah, ‘course I do, run by it every time.”

“Think you could drop us there?”

“Sure.”

They were all silent for a few moments, then Jack spoke again. “You two better get some sleep. We’ve gotta head out kinda early if we’re gonna make it to Zone One by midday. You two can take the bed, unless you guys don’t wanna share…”

“No no, that’s absolutely fine. Are you sure? We wouldn’t want…”

“I don’t want to hear it. I’ll take the couch, and I’ll be just fine. You two need something kinda soft after what you’ve been through.”

Ghoul smiled, walked over to Kobra, and helped him up slowly, a hand on his waist. “Thanks so much for everything,” he said to Jack, grabbing the crackers on his way up.   
“Not a problem at all. With you guys riskin’ your life for all of us out there, the least I can do is give y’all a place to sleep.”  
\------------------------  
When Ghoul and Kobra had left and closed the door, Jack kicked off his shoes, and grabbed a large T-shirt out of the chest. He sat down on the sofa with a groan. He rubbed his knees, then his eyes, opening and eating a packet of crackers and water. It was the last one; he’d have to get some more tomorrow if he could. He then balled the shirt up, and laid down and closed his eyes, using the shirt as a pillow.  
\------------------------  
Ghoul laid Kobra down on the bed, the metal springs creaking as he did so. Ghoul could hardly see; the only light in the room was from the moon and stars. He helped kobra take his shoes off, and covered him up with a patchwork quilt that looked homemade. He removed his own shoes and crawled in bed next to Kobra.

“Hey,” Ghoul whispered. “I didn’t exactly tell the entire truth back there.”

“Yeah?” he heard a voice say. “Then what happened?” Ghoul heard a sniff too, and assumed that Kobra had started crying. 

Ghoul sighed before starting again. “Jet’s gone. That part’s true.” He heard a new set of sobs come from the darkness. “But… I didn’t find anything of Poison’s. No body, no jacket, no mask, no nothing. I think he’s still in the city.”

Kobra sat up, and Ghoul could see the streams down the sides of his face glinting in the moonlight. “I need him to be alive. I can’t live with myself if he isn’t.”  
Ghoul nodded, then pulled him closer as they both erupted into silent sobs. They held each other for what seemed like hours, until the sobs had finally subsided. 

“I know. I miss him too. But there’s a good chance he’s still alive.”  
Kobra nodded and wiped his face, smearing dirt and tears across his cheeks. “We need to go get him. I’m not leaving him in there.”

“We can talk about that in the morning. Get some sleep now.” Kobra nodded again, laying back down in the bed, back facing Ghoul- but something made him turn back over. 

Ghoul had layed down under the blankets as well, not facing Kobra. “Ghoul?” Kobra asked, turning over. “How did you… know about the pills… what did you call them? The assistance regimen or something?” 

Ghoul stiffened, and was silent for a long while. The only sound that could be heard were the insects chirping outside.   
“I had… a lot of issues when I was younger. I had some stuff I didn’t want to deal with. Mostly my parents… It doesn’t matter. I got ahold of them a couple times… but I was always too scared to let myself die. I couldn’t ever do it.”

Kobra didn’t respond instantly. “Ghoul, I… never knew. I’m sorry,” he whispered.

“Yeah, it’s okay. It doesn’t matter. It’s all in the past.”

“But-“

“I said it doesn’t matter anymore. I’ve found my reason to live. You and Poison… you’d be lost without each other. And The Girl? Who knows if she’s still alive? And D, and Pony… you guys are my reason to live. I can’t do it alone.” 

Ghoul didn’t say anything from then on, but Kobra heard the occasional sniffle. “Thanks Ghoul. You mean a lot to all of us too.” He paused, unsure of what else to say.  
“Goodnight,” was what he settled on before he drifted off to an uneasy sleep, a sickly feeling in the pit of his stomach and the world weighing down on his heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright. Chapter 4. I know its been about 6 or 7 months since I've updated this, and I'm extremely sorry. Moving, work, friends, money and computer issues have prevented me from working on this for the longest time. That being said, I'm not going to give up on this story even if it takes me a while. I can't say exactly when the next chapter will come out, but since the summer's getting closer, I'll have more free time, and I really do want to get this going again! Thanks for sticking with me!


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